Administrators Eric Posted March 17, 2021 Administrators Share Posted March 17, 2021 I’ve done a bit of lead work. I’ve met a few older guys along the way who were truly masters at it. They are an almost extinct breed. 5 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
crockett Posted March 17, 2021 Share Posted March 17, 2021 (edited) Looks like you got some awesome project going! That's clean work in my book. Is that solder? Been working on it for long? What model and year? Not exactly the same, I did some ductwork last year for my range hood and another duct pulling the hot air out of my server rack, and pushing it through the HVAC envelope. Cutting, bending and riveting sheet metal into something that is not plain square turned out to be a major task for a HVAC noob like me. Took me a few days but I learned something. Edited March 17, 2021 by crockett Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Administrators Eric Posted March 17, 2021 Author Administrators Share Posted March 17, 2021 3 minutes ago, crockett said: Looks like you got some awesome project going! That's clean work in my book. Is that solder? Been working on it for long? What model and year? Not exactly the same, I did some ductwork last year for my range hood and another duct pulling the hot air out of my server rack, and pushing it through the HVAC envelope. Cutting, bending and riveting sheet metal into something that is not plain square turned out to be a major task for a HVAC noob like me. Took me a few days but I learned something. Nice looking setup. I love an organized server cabinet. I’m a bit OCD that way. Most people don’t appreciate the amount of heat servers generate. Above all other things, heat kills electronics. Cool, clean airflow is vital to healthy servers. The pics above aren’t my work. I saw them on Facebook and I thought I’d post them. I have done lead work before. The work is usually performed with a torch with a rosebud tip, some tallow to grease the wooden shaping paddle, some acid flux and a bar of lead. Then you use a file to do the shaping. A vixen file is the way to go. Any file will cut the lead, but most of them will clog up. A vixen file is designed to push the lead out the sides of the file. Once the lead is shaped, you can use sandpaper to finish it. It works beautifully, it will flex with the body, it will never separate (if applied correctly) and it will outlast the car. Polyester fillers have mostly replaced leadwork, but they will never surpass the quality. 2 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Administrators Eric Posted March 17, 2021 Author Administrators Share Posted March 17, 2021 14 minutes ago, crockett said: Looks like you got some awesome project going! That's clean work in my book. Is that solder? Been working on it for long? What model and year? Not exactly the same, I did some ductwork last year for my range hood and another duct pulling the hot air out of my server rack, and pushing it through the HVAC envelope. Cutting, bending and riveting sheet metal into something that is not plain square turned out to be a major task for a HVAC noob like me. Took me a few days but I learned something. BTW, all I can tell from the pics is that the car is a ‘50s Jaguar XK drophead or roadster. Incidentally, I did once do some restoration work on a Jag XK150 Drophead. Most of the work I did on it was structural woodwork and paint prep. The body was very straight already. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
crockett Posted March 17, 2021 Share Posted March 17, 2021 (edited) 46 minutes ago, Eric said: Nice looking setup. I love an organized server cabinet. I’m a bit OCD that way. Most people don’t appreciate the amount of heat servers generate. Above all other things, heat kills electronics. Cool, clean airflow is vital to healthy servers. The pics above aren’t my work. I saw them on Facebook and I thought I’d post them. I have done lead work before. The work is usually performed with a torch with a rosebud tip, some tallow to grease the wooden shaping paddle, some acid flux and a bar of lead. Then you use a file to do the shaping. A vixen file is the way to go. Any file will cut the lead, but most of them will clog up. A vixen file is designed to push the lead out the sides of the file. Once the lead is shaped, you can use sandpaper to finish it. It works beautifully, it will flex with the body, it will never separate (if applied correctly) and it will outlast the car. Polyester fillers have mostly replaced leadwork, but they will never surpass the quality. Thanks for explaining that, never seen it before. Looks super smooth when finished. I don't like working with bondo fillers, I always end up with too much and uneven material while running out of time. This lead work reminds me of amalgam or gold fillings versus those synthetic fillings for teeth. Gold is so soft, it adheres much better, while staying somewhat flexible and being less prone to become brittle. Lead may have been a good solution for my recent paintjob on the minivan. It had corrosion on the lower sections of both front doors and the front of the hood. Instead of messing with filler I just sanded / blended into the old paint. Its now a "10 feet away job". Good enough for that $3,000 beater. Final setup. As with everything, I should have bought a taller rack. Temperature used to be well over 90 F when the rack door was closed, now its exactly at the temp I have my AC set at (75 F). PS: I need a bigger lot outside HOA, with a proper shop. Would love to restore an entire classic. Edited March 17, 2021 by crockett 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Administrators Eric Posted March 17, 2021 Author Administrators Share Posted March 17, 2021 2 minutes ago, crockett said: Thanks for explaining that, never seen it before. Looks super smooth when finished. I don't like working with bondo fillers, I always end up with too much and uneven material while running out of time. This lead work reminds me of amalgam or gold fillings versus those synthetic fillings for teeth. Gold is so soft, it adheres much better, while staying somewhat flexible and being loss prone to become brittle. Lead may have been a good solution for my recent paintjob on the minivan. It had corrosion on the lower sections of both front doors and the front of the hood. Instead of messing with filler I just sanded / blended into the old paint. Its now a "10 feet away job". Good enough for that $3,000 beater. Final setup. As with everything, I should have bought a taller rack. Temperature used to be well over 90 F when the rack door was closed, now its exactly at the temp I have my AC set at (75 F). It isn’t difficult to get started working lead. Eastwood sells everything needed to work lead. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
crockett Posted March 17, 2021 Share Posted March 17, 2021 1 minute ago, Eric said: It isn’t difficult to get started working lead. Eastwood sells everything needed to work lead. Good to know! I bought the primer and paint for the minivan from Eastwood. First time I ordered from them. Their 2-Component rattle cans allow for a much better paintjob than those cheap products from the local auto parts stores. Only issue, once activated, the paint is only good for a day or 2. A proper compressor, paint guns and a booth would be awesome, which brings me back to a bigger lot lol. One day... one day. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
crockett Posted March 17, 2021 Share Posted March 17, 2021 They got a great video on the subject... 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Administrators Eric Posted March 17, 2021 Author Administrators Share Posted March 17, 2021 2 minutes ago, crockett said: Good to know! I bought the primer and paint for the minivan from Eastwood. First time I ordered from them. Their 2-Component rattle cans allow for a much better paintjob than those cheap products from the local auto parts stores. Only issue, once activated, the paint is only good for a day or 2. A proper compressor, paint guns and a booth would be awesome, which brings me back to a bigger lot lol. One day... one day. Here’s a tip when using a spray paint can. Run some hot water from the tap into a bowl and stand the can of spray paint in it. Increasing the temp of the can increases the pressure and you get a finer, higher pressure spray pattern. You’ll get less orange peel and better coverage. 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Administrators Eric Posted March 17, 2021 Author Administrators Share Posted March 17, 2021 3 minutes ago, crockett said: They got a great video on the subject... I’ve seen other videos by that guy. That is a truly horrible rug he is wearing, but he is very knowledgeable. Good videos. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Administrators Eric Posted March 17, 2021 Author Administrators Share Posted March 17, 2021 5 minutes ago, crockett said: They got a great video on the subject... That tinning butter is good stuff. It is much easier to use than a plain acid flux. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
crockett Posted March 17, 2021 Share Posted March 17, 2021 I wonder if lead sticks to aluminum, because the hood on the van is made from it. I'll keep the tip with the hot water in mind. Thanks! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Administrators Eric Posted March 17, 2021 Author Administrators Share Posted March 17, 2021 Just now, crockett said: I wonder if lead sticks to aluminum, because the hood on the van is made from it. I'll keep the tip with the hot water in mind. Thanks! Even if it did, it is damned tricky to heat aluminum. It goes from solid to slag in the blink of an eye. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Administrators Eric Posted March 17, 2021 Author Administrators Share Posted March 17, 2021 2 minutes ago, crockett said: I wonder if lead sticks to aluminum, because the hood on the van is made from it. I'll keep the tip with the hot water in mind. Thanks! This is a great filler to use on aluminum. It is an aluminum-filled polyester body filler. It works beautifully. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
crockett Posted March 17, 2021 Share Posted March 17, 2021 Taking notes. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Administrators Eric Posted March 17, 2021 Author Administrators Share Posted March 17, 2021 11 minutes ago, crockett said: Taking notes. It’s a good feeling to be able to tackle projects for yourself. Self sufficiency seemed to be a lost art these days as well, especially among youngsters. Hell, I’m taking apart a couple of cable signal analyzers I bought at a pawn shop tomorrow, so I can solder new batteries onto their system boards. It would cost a lot to ship them back to the manufacture to have it done. Men should know how to fix things. 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
crockett Posted March 17, 2021 Share Posted March 17, 2021 9 hours ago, Eric said: It’s a good feeling to be able to tackle projects for yourself. Self sufficiency seemed to be a lost art these days as well, especially among youngsters. Hell, I’m taking apart a couple of cable signal analyzers I bought at a pawn shop tomorrow, so I can solder new batteries onto their system boards. It would cost a lot to ship them back to the manufacture to have it done. Men should know how to fix things. I feel the same. Plenty of new challenges around the house over time. I'm not a fan of contactors etc walking through my stuff. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
holyjohnson Posted March 17, 2021 Share Posted March 17, 2021 i used to go to 'Back to the 50s' every year in Mpls. and you could ask who did what to the cars and it was almost always the owner did it themselves. Winters in MN are long, and the best time to learn a new art. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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